Semi-Gaming Computer (£700-800)/(Aprox~$1200)

[nfgangsta2]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: This month
BUDGET RANGE: (e.g.: £700-800)

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Essentially University work (Engineering software will be most demanding, but otherwise just word processors etc) and games (not usually requiring extreme high specs), extra uses could include, internet surfing, movies, music media etc...

PARTS PREFERENCES: I'm leaning mainly towards ASUS and gigabyte MOBO's, and Intel processors, I'm not drawn between nvidia and ATI in GPU.

OVERCLOCKING: No

SLI OR CROSSFIRE:No

MONITOR RESOLUTION: Undecided, i'll likely purchase the monitor after built to suit the PC

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: LED's always look nice

-----------------------------------------

My build as it stands is as follows, my question is that, due to this being my first ever build i'm unexperienced, and i would 1. like to know whether i have made any mistakes in my calculating that all the components fit together, and 2. like to know any advice that you may have for me to alter any components or any general building advice with the components that i have chosen (E.g.:from your past experiences with such components, or your knowledge on building in general). Please don't hesitate to ask for more information if i haven't provided enough as it stands.

MOBO: Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R
CPU: Intel Core i7 930 (bloomfield)
MEM: Corsair XMS3 (6GB)
GPU: ATI 5750... XFX model Gigabyte Model <<<Advice on the differences?
HDD: Samsung HD103SJ
CASE: Antec two hundred gaming case
DVD: Samsung SH-B083L Internal blu ray/ DVD+RW Disk Drive
PSU: Corsair 550W VX
Thermal Compound: Undecided, advice would be very welcome

All of this amounts to around the £780 mark, Thanks for your time in advance and i'll look forward to hearing from anyone who wishes to help me

 

[Mr Pizza]

you do not need thermal compound
and do you really need a blu-ray player?

 

[Silvune]

I think this is better:

CPU: Intel Core i7-870 2.93Ghz Lynnfield 45nm £222.27
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-i7-870-Lynnfield-45nm-Quad-Core-293GHz-DMI25-GT-s-8MB-Cache-22x-Ratio-95W-Retail

Mobo: Asus P7P55D-E LX £99.35
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-P7P55D-E-LX-P55-Express-S1156-PCI-E-20-DDR3-2200%28OC%29-USB-30-SATA-6Gb-s-SATA-RAID-ATX

RAM: Corsair XMS3 Classic DDR3 1600Mhz (PC3-12800) 7-8-7-20 1.65V CMX4GX3M2A1600C7 £93.11
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/4GB-%282x2GB%29-Corsair-XMS3-Classic-DDR3-PC3-12800-%281600%29-Non-ECC-Unbuffered-CAS-7-8-7-20-165V
If your engineering software needs lots of RAM, then get a second set for a total of £186.22

GPU: Sapphire HD 5770 512MB GDDR5 £112.22
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/199404

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB £44.63
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB-Samsung-HD103SJ-Spinpoint-F3-SATA-3Gb-s-7200rpm-32MB-Cache-89-ms-NCQ-OEM

Case: Antec 200 £34.59
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Antec-Two-Hundred-Value-Gaming-Case-HOT-SWAP-SATA-HDD-BAY-included-10-drive-bays-140mmplus120mm-fans

PSU: Keep the one from dabs, as that is at a good price. Corsair VX550 £55.98 Unless there's a delivery charge, in which case get this:
Silverstone Strider ST50F 500W £49.31
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500W-Silverstone-ST50F-Silent-PSU-120mm-Fan-Dual-plus12V

DVD: Same £49.98
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Samsung-Blu-Ray-Combo-Player-8x-BD-ROM-16x-DVD-ROM-48x-CD-ROM-Read-LightScribe-Retail

Total: £712.13 (+93.11 for the second set of RAM)

You've got a faster processor, much cheaper motherboard due to cutting out the superfluous PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots. Still got SATA6G/USB3, you could cut here even further if you don't want/need that. You're getting faster RAM (more if you need it). And a faster GPU. If you didn't need the extra set of RAM then you could afford a more expensive case, if one catches your eye.

The difference between those two 5750s is probably just warranty, customer support and then the fan.

The CPU will come with a stock heatsink which will have thermal paste preapplied, if your not going to buy an aftermarket heatsink then you might as well not bother replacing the stock thermal compound.

 

[batuchka]

Oh well this would be the fruit of all me off UK ubergeek (ok ok joking ) Engineering/CG Artist/Comliper/gamer/anything u throw at it uni/college configs i do up these days with the stress on portability/mobility (which may be applicable to you hehe)

Off EBuyer UK 771 pounds, featuring SATA/USB III, GTX 460 and Sandfoce based 60GB SSD

I recommend the Cooler Master GeminiIIS low profile cooler as after market HSF if u wanna start OC a.s.a.p ^^

 

[nfgangsta2]

I think this is better:

CPU: Intel Core i7-870 2.93Ghz Lynnfield 45nm £222.27
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-i7-870-Lynnfield-45nm-Quad-Core-293GHz-DMI25-GT-s-8MB-Cache-22x-Ratio-95W-Retail

Mobo: Asus P7P55D-E LX £99.35
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-P7P55D-E-LX-P55-Express-S1156-PCI-E-20-DDR3-2200%28OC%29-USB-30-SATA-6Gb-s-SATA-RAID-ATX

RAM: Corsair XMS3 Classic DDR3 1600Mhz (PC3-12800) 7-8-7-20 1.65V CMX4GX3M2A1600C7 £93.11
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/4GB-%282x2GB%29-Corsair-XMS3-Classic-DDR3-PC3-12800-%281600%29-Non-ECC-Unbuffered-CAS-7-8-7-20-165V
If your engineering software needs lots of RAM, then get a second set for a total of £186.22

GPU: Sapphire HD 5770 512MB GDDR5 £112.22
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/199404

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB £44.63
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB-Samsung-HD103SJ-Spinpoint-F3-SATA-3Gb-s-7200rpm-32MB-Cache-89-ms-NCQ-OEM

Case: Antec 200 £34.59
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Antec-Two-Hundred-Value-Gaming-Case-HOT-SWAP-SATA-HDD-BAY-included-10-drive-bays-140mmplus120mm-fans

PSU: Keep the one from dabs, as that is at a good price. Corsair VX550 £55.98 Unless there's a delivery charge, in which case get this:
Silverstone Strider ST50F 500W £49.31
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500W-Silverstone-ST50F-Silent-PSU-120mm-Fan-Dual-plus12V

DVD: Same £49.98
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Samsung-Blu-Ray-Combo-Player-8x-BD-ROM-16x-DVD-ROM-48x-CD-ROM-Read-LightScribe-Retail

Total: £712.13 (+93.11 for the second set of RAM)

You've got a faster processor, much cheaper motherboard due to cutting out the superfluous PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots. Still got SATA6G/USB3, you could cut here even further if you don't want/need that. You're getting faster RAM (more if you need it). And a faster GPU. If you didn't need the extra set of RAM then you could afford a more expensive case, if one catches your eye.

The difference between those two 5750s is probably just warranty, customer support and then the fan.

The CPU will come with a stock heatsink which will have thermal paste preapplied, if your not going to buy an aftermarket heatsink then you might as well not bother replacing the stock thermal compound.

I like your thinking in dropping to the LGA1156, but are you sure the processor and motherboard combo would be quicker?
My initial thinking behind getting the LGA1366 board & cpu was that in say a few years and a bit of luck, the extreme 980X will be alot cheaper and i could implement a bit of plug and play with it so i don't have to make an entire rebuild, but if you believe that your proposed build would be quicker then it may be more worthwhile going for your path...
however i would like to know why your option is quicker if that is the case
Regarding memory, i think the best approach for me as it stands could be to put just 4gb on and see how it holds before buying unneccassarily...
regarding SATA/USB 3 i would much prefer keeping them as to let the pc keep up in the future, and i have recently seen another case that i could use instead- Raidmax Smilodon Your views?

Thankyou both for your advice on the thermal paste, i had no idea :$
But yeah i was going to stick with the standard heatsink from intel
Thanks alot, and i hope to hear from you soon

 

[nfgangsta2]

Oh well this would be the fruit of all me off UK ubergeek (ok ok joking ) Engineering/CG Artist/Comliper/gamer/anything u throw at it uni/college configs i do up these days with the stress on portability/mobility (which may be applicable to you hehe)

Off EBuyer UK 771 pounds, featuring SATA/USB III, GTX 460 and Sandfoce based 60GB SSD
http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q205/batuchka/Untitled-1048.jpg
I recommend the Cooler Master GeminiIIS low profile cooler as after market HSF if u wanna start OC a.s.a.p ^^

Hey man, In that case i'm glad your here to help
I think your set up seems great and all in my budget but i just have a few questions to ask, and one problem...
I'll start with the problem, unfortunately i was really trying to avoid using AMD, after a previous bad experience and that basically i have no knowledge in that area since as i've never even considered them since... but other than the change of MOBO and CPU i believe that the other options could be viable

First question, the ssd, i'm not too knowledgable about these as they had a tendancy to hugely increase the overall price past my budget and therefore for their capacity i decided that they were probably best to avoid... but as you have managed to fit it into the budget, i would like to know some reasoning behind why you have decided to include it into the build etc? any light you can shed on the situation would be great (you may call me SSD noob guy)

Secondly, the price of the GPU, (and i presume its accompanying quality) do you believe it is much more neccesary to have a much greater GPU than the ATI 5750/(proposed 5770)? and why etc?

My proposal would be, to remove the SSD and cheapen up the graphics, in order to change the MOBO and CPU to the more expensive intel 1366 (or 1156). Now you may tell me why i'm wrong, be as critical as you wish, these are only my initial thoughts, and please bare with my noobiness in the situation, i'm very appriciative of your help

 

[nfgangsta2]

I think this is better:

CPU: Intel Core i7-870 2.93Ghz Lynnfield 45nm £222.27
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Intel-Core-i7-870-Lynnfield-45nm-Quad-Core-293GHz-DMI25-GT-s-8MB-Cache-22x-Ratio-95W-Retail

Mobo: Asus P7P55D-E LX £99.35
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-P7P55D-E-LX-P55-Express-S1156-PCI-E-20-DDR3-2200%28OC%29-USB-30-SATA-6Gb-s-SATA-RAID-ATX

RAM: Corsair XMS3 Classic DDR3 1600Mhz (PC3-12800) 7-8-7-20 1.65V CMX4GX3M2A1600C7 £93.11
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/4GB-%282x2GB%29-Corsair-XMS3-Classic-DDR3-PC3-12800-%281600%29-Non-ECC-Unbuffered-CAS-7-8-7-20-165V
If your engineering software needs lots of RAM, then get a second set for a total of £186.22

GPU: Sapphire HD 5770 512MB GDDR5 £112.22
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/199404

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB £44.63
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/ss1TB-Samsung-HD103SJ-Spinpoint-F3-SATA-3Gb-s-7200rpm-32MB-Cache-89-ms-NCQ-OEM

Case: Antec 200 £34.59
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Antec-Two-Hundred-Value-Gaming-Case-HOT-SWAP-SATA-HDD-BAY-included-10-drive-bays-140mmplus120mm-fans

PSU: Keep the one from dabs, as that is at a good price. Corsair VX550 £55.98 Unless there's a delivery charge, in which case get this:
Silverstone Strider ST50F 500W £49.31
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500W-Silverstone-ST50F-Silent-PSU-120mm-Fan-Dual-plus12V

DVD: Same £49.98
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Samsung-Blu-Ray-Combo-Player-8x-BD-ROM-16x-DVD-ROM-48x-CD-ROM-Read-LightScribe-Retail

Total: £712.13 (+93.11 for the second set of RAM)

You've got a faster processor, much cheaper motherboard due to cutting out the superfluous PCI-E 2.0 x16 slots. Still got SATA6G/USB3, you could cut here even further if you don't want/need that. You're getting faster RAM (more if you need it). And a faster GPU. If you didn't need the extra set of RAM then you could afford a more expensive case, if one catches your eye.

The difference between those two 5750s is probably just warranty, customer support and then the fan.

The CPU will come with a stock heatsink which will have thermal paste preapplied, if your not going to buy an aftermarket heatsink then you might as well not bother replacing the stock thermal compound.

Sorry, and also could you please explain the change of GPU from 5750 1GB to 5770 512MB?
and also i apologise for my noobiness and hope your patience doesn't wear too thin

 

[batuchka]

Hey man, In that case i'm glad your here to help
I think your set up seems great and all in my budget but i just have a few questions to ask, and one problem...
I'll start with the problem, unfortunately i was really trying to avoid using AMD, after a previous bad experience and that basically i have no knowledge in that area since as i've never even considered them since... but other than the change of MOBO and CPU i believe that the other options could be viable

First question, the ssd, i'm not too knowledgable about these as they had a tendancy to hugely increase the overall price past my budget and therefore for their capacity i decided that they were probably best to avoid... but as you have managed to fit it into the budget, i would like to know some reasoning behind why you have decided to include it into the build etc? any light you can shed on the situation would be great (you may call me SSD noob guy)

Secondly, the price of the GPU, (and i presume its accompanying quality) do you believe it is much more neccesary to have a much greater GPU than the ATI 5750/(proposed 5770)? and why etc?

My proposal would be, to remove the SSD and cheapen up the graphics, in order to change the MOBO and CPU to the more expensive intel 1366 (or 1156). Now you may tell me why i'm wrong, be as critical as you wish, these are only my initial thoughts, and please bare with my noobiness in the situation, i'm very appriciative of your help

1. If u talking about overheating in the Duron days , etc thats in the past ^^
2. For most systems an SSD will make breathe new life in seemingly dated systems and in an X6
3. Not only is it worth it CUDA could also come in handy in engineering,CG, etc
4.Rather than depend on others have a read up on chips,mobos and chipset progression and make an more educated choice as per your needs/budget

Cheers